Sacchrilege

Taking a large step away from his trippy, organic-sounding beats, left-field hip-hop producer Boom Bip made warm, danceable electronica on his 2007 EP Sacchrilege. Keyboards, synths, and unsyncopated techno-influenced beats are the heart of the five tracks on the album, and while they are certainly something far afield from what he usually does, they're well done, bright and quick. The songs here aren't completely original -- they all sound like something that could be played at any hipster dance party in L.A., Chicago, or New York -- moving from the pop-industrial-influenced "Snook Ads" to the darker, bouncy percussion of "One of Eleven," but they're not simple knock-offs, either. Rather, it sounds like Boom Bip is having a good time, trying something he doesn't usually do, showing off his versatility. That's not to say these new beats will, or should, eclipse the work for which he's better known, but for a five-song EP only, they're a lot of fun. ~ Marisa Brown